H.o.P.E. members were a huge part in the success of the 30th Annual Heritage Days Parade and I would like to give them the thanks they deserve.

Norma Kennedy who actually discovered it was the 30th anniversary by her tireless research into the history of Parrish. She found the actual original flier from 1986 that is on display at the Museum of H.o.P.E. Norma was also instrumental in working with Pearl McCraw to make the Pioneering display such a huge event.

Allan Iverson took fliers to car shows and talked to classic car owners for two months leading up to the parade. Most of the classic cars in the parade were a direct result of Allan’s recruiting.

Jim Smith contacted the company doing the road construction on Hwy 301 and had meetings with the owners of the construction company in order to not only keep the route safe but also to remove the debris and silt fence that was blocking the entrance into the festival grounds.

Vivian Buice who agreed to ride in the parade and accept her rightful honor of Honorary Parade Queen. Vivian, along with many others, was instrumental in the early days of the Parrish Heritage Days.

Finally a huge thanks to all the many new participants who participated in the parade. We may need to expand the parade route next year as almost all have said they will be back and will be bringing friends. Any thank you would not be complete without thanking Cindy Chin for her amazing work on the parade. A special thanks also to my wife (she said I couldn’t name her) for the many hours of phone calls, texts, and emails in recruiting parade participants.

I cannot wait until next years Parrish Heritage Days, I can guarantee big surprises and I will be making announcements as participants are confirmed.